By Brian Mittge / For The Chronicle
I hope you all nominated candidates for The Chronicle’s annual “Best of Lewis County” competition. The voting round will come next, beginning Aug. 24. In a homespun spinoff, I’m celebrating the less prominent but still delightful parts of our community that might not qualify for a big award, but still make life here richer and more enjoyable. I’m calling these honorees “the Rest of Lewis County.”
The Rest of South Lewis County
- The Gospodor Monuments: This trio of crazy steel pillars along I-5 might have fallen on hard times (and some of their splendor has literally fallen to the ground) since the quirky Dominic Gospodor erected them 20 years ago, but they still catch the eye. Honorable mention goes to his carved wooden eagle, which was moved into Toledo for display in a giant glass case.
- The Little Falls of Vader: McMurphy Park, on the northern outskirts of Vader, is a big-city caliber park in one of our smallest communities. Its wide spaces and rolling hills are perfect for frolicking. And the sweeping curve of Olequa Creek along the western edge of the park gives great access to one of Lewis County’s most gorgeous small waterways. It’s also home to the “little falls” that gave the town one of its early names.
- The roosters of Egg Town: Winlock, home of the great Egg Days parade and celebration, takes its poultry heritage and theme seriously in the most lighthearted way. I love the colorful roosters proudly displayed around town, but it does inspire a question: how many roosters does it take to lay the World’s Largest Egg?
The Rest of East Lewis County
- A spiritual walk: One of my favorite hikes is up the Stations of the Cross Trail on the northwest edge of Mossyrock. Beginning at the Shrine of Divine Mercy Chapel, this trail takes you past beautiful artwork of Jesus in his final hours, and ends at a giant cross overlooking the Cowlitz Valley. My hat is off to Jack and Bob DeGoede for opening their property to the public many years ago and commissioning this artwork. With their well-deserved retirement from DeGoede Bulb Farm, I hope that they will keep this wonderful trail open to the public.
- The chain saw art of Packwood: The timber heritage of east Lewis County is alive and well in the great chain saw sculptures and statues of Packwood. I love the grand firefighter outside the fire hall, the bear at the Packwood Timberland Library, and the merchants selling their fresh chain saw statues.
- Huckleberries: The finest berries in the world are ripe and ready in our Cascade Mountains. The U.S. Forest Services offers free permits for personal use and information on where to pick these beautiful blueberries that taste like the great outdoors. Just watch for bears amongst the berries.
The Rest of West Lewis County
- Country roads: The gravel road connecting Boistfort and Wildwood with Vader, and the nearby road connecting Curtis with Winlock, have always seemed a little like secret passages to me. They are slow going, but it feels magical to pop out in an entirely different part of the county. Honorable mention to Ceres Hill Road for a similar experience.
- The Doty Store: Setting foot in this gem is like stepping back in time to an olde-fashioned country general mercantile. It’s also a quick, fun detour from the Willapa Hills Trail if you and your bicycling kiddos want some ice cream.
- Three squared: I just have to mention the cosmic intersection of Third Avenue and Third Street in Pe Ell. Where else can you stand on the corner of 3rd and 3rd?•••
It was good to hear this week from Onalaska’s Esther Williams, ARNP, a family nurse practitioner who noted that while “The Best of Lewis County” honors doctors, physical therapists, pharmacies and many other professionals, it doesn’t have a category for other key health care providers in our community.
“NP’s (Nurse Practitioners) and PA’s (Physician Assistants) are a unique group of professionals who provide a large portion of health care to a lot of Lewis County people,” Williams wrote. “But since we are not ‘MD’s’ or RN’s, or other mainstream professionals, our group of providers are never recognized or credited for their hard work. And please do not refer to us as “Mid-levels” or “Physician Extenders.” We are trained, board certified and credentialed by licensing boards after extensive training to provide healthcare in almost every specialty. ”
In a time when many clinics are so short-staffed that they aren’t accepting new patients, I agree with Williams that we should definitely celebrate these trained health care providers.
Brian Mittge can be reached at brianmittge@hotmail.com.
